Sacred Sanctuary
The Red Tent among the apple trees in the Medicine Garden at Embercombe
Although almost seven weeks have passed since the Wood Sisters took the Red Tent to the Westcountry Storytelling Festival, so much of the magic and mystery of those four days remains fresh in heart and mind. Perhaps it becomes clearer as the exhaustion of being deeply immersed in running the whole event (Sue as the overall festival director and Sam as programme co-ordinator) wears off!
Storyteller, Clive Fairweather, amazes Tam and others with his hare thigh bone!
The Festival as a whole was full of wonders…perhaps best expressed in the photos here (and please do visit the Westcountry Storytelling Festival Facebook page for more, as there are many inspiring images). Some of my personal favourite inner and outer images include those of children captivated by myth and storytelling… and memories of odd moments, such as hearing an obviously ‘reluctant to come’ husband talking with great animation and enthusiasm to his wife, in the toilet queue, about being inspired by the storytellers.
Red Tent Goddess
During the Festival, most of my time was spent with the Wood Sisters holding our sacred sanctuary space in the Red Tent. It felt as if our vision of Red Tent finally came fully down to earth as many women, men and children discovered our quiet space in the Embercombe Medicine Garden and touched into our daily rhythm of meditation, myth, story and music.
A Wood Sister in the making!
There is so much to celebrate in our time there, that it feels almost impossible to know what to write now! Personally I was greatly heartened by the beautiful altars created by Miriam and the faithful folks who turned up at around 8am to start the day in meditation, which really held the space for all that then unfolded throughout the day. Every hour contained some new treat and we were especially blessed with some wonderful storytelling.
Sue storytelling in the Red Tent
Visiting women tellers Cailtin Matthews, Rachel Rose Reid and Shonaleigh Cumbers were each utterly inspiring in completely different ways. Images and feelings circle within me…of Caitlin looking every inch a Celtic Bard and Shaman, as she stood at the altar and sounded the bells of the golden bough and through word and song transported us to the otherworldly landscape of the Grail. Later that same night, I have etched in my mind an image of standing out in the night and gazing through the doorway of the Red Tent. All within is held in the warm red glow of candles and the story of Persephone being beautifully woven by Rachel, while above the stars shine out in the darkness, such that the small space of the tent seems held within the greater space of the cosmos. While the next day, we finally discover just how many people the Red Tent can hold by squashing in 60 folks of all ages. There’s no performance space for Shonaleigh who simply sits on the floor in amongst us and brings tears to every eye with her telling of the Whore at the Crossroads. I still feel moved to tears when I remember the power of this story of Tamar, one of the many overlooked and misunderstood women in the Bible and I was deeply touched by Shonaleigh’s courage in sharing the relationship between this story and the stories of her own family and their suffering, strength and spirit during the Holocaust.
Balancing masculine and feminine? A giant red breast of a Tent with the little Red Tractor…
As I remember these visiting storytellers with deep gratitude, I equally remember with thanksgiving all the wonderful Wood Sisters, many of whom are great storytellers in their own right. Lisa Schneidau brought rich tales from India, which added a much appreciated interfaith dimension to our Sanctuary, while Ronnie Conboy upheld our Celtic Traditions with some wonderful Welsh tales including those of some real wild west women! Rebecca Smart beautifully spun her own storyweb, Sue reminded us of our Wood Sisterly roots with a powerful telling of the Handless Maiden and stories from Mesopotamia and the Bible and even I, Sam, came a little closer to my own strange storyteller self with an exploration of trance telling, including the tale of Ceridwen and Taliesin.
Fran and her cello with friends
The Wood Sisters are not only storytellers, but include some talented muscians. Abigail returned with her beautiful harp playing and singing…and one of her sessions also contributed some of our best comedic moments as loudly apple chewing children added a certain something to her listening meditation! New Wood Sisters Janna and Fran delighted us with both their shared singing and Fran’s cello music, including during an evening circle that was perhaps one of the highlights for me, as it so perfectly expressed the shared wisdom, creativity and mystery that lies at the heart of the Wood Sisters. During this open session we moved from Maggie’s stirring mask dance, through music & story with Janna, Fran & Abigail and concluded with Helen, our very own Thames Troubadour. Helen’s taste of her travels along the Thames was both physically dynamic and movingly honest and down to earth.
Wood Sister Joanna Hruby with the Corm Maiden she created for the Festival. Thank you Joanna for all your wonderful creativity at this and the Wood Sisters Winter Festival!
And last but not least, I remember and thank Tarte Noire, who were such a powerful and transformative presence in the Red Tent. Their Playback Theatre workshops drew and touched many women as ever, but it was their Oracle sessions that really seemed to come close to the heart of women’s Mysteries. From the outside it did feel rather as if we could have been waiting at Delphi as strange, wild and oracular sounds emerged from within the heart of the Sanctuary. It seemed that women were truly baring their souls and being met with equal honesty, depth and passion.
View from the red Tent…including Wood Brother Tam
Finally, this journal post would not be complete without remembering and giving thanks for all the solid, practical hard work that went into getting the tent up, stewarding all the events and clearing up at the end. None of the inspirational moments are possible without a team to put in all that hard graft. The Red Tent Team were the best! Many women were performing and also working and others were just steadily there, holding it altogether and participating and sharing their own gifts of love and wisdom throughout. In addition to everyone already mentioned, Sue and I would also like to thank our Wood Brothers Martin, Ian, Alexander, Tam and passing male helpers….and also our dear friends Joyce, Juliette and especially Jo, whose warm hearted presence, generosity and excellent cooking are such a blessing…
Thank you everyone, including all those who came and joined us in the Red Tent, for making this vision of a sacred sanctuary into a reality.